Semiconductor device technology continues to scale to ever decreasing feature sizes. For metal-oxide semiconductor field-effect transistor (MOSFET) devices, the channel length may at times reduce to a level where the influence of the drain on device operation begins to compete with the influence of the gate. Under worst case conditions, a drain region may have the ability to turn the device on, without any gate voltage, or prevent the device from turning off. Devices that exhibit channel current not controlled by the gate electrode are symptomatic of a problem often referred to as the short channel effect.
Those skilled in the art have employed a variety of mitigation measures to address the short channel effect, including thinning the respective drain and source regions, and devising intricate finned transistor structures. While beneficial for their intended purposes, conventional ways to address the short channel effect often result in significant power dissipation or manufacturing cost.